Method or art of making insulated wire



w. E. COOK.

ME' I'HOD 0R ART O F MAKING INSULATED WIRE APPLICATION FILED APR. 24. I917. I 1,415,153. Patented May 9,1922.

INVENTOR man/15y.

- nor is highly satisfactory,

NI'TED STATES PATENT OFFlCE.

WILLIAM E. 0001:, or NEw roan, N. Y., ASSIGNOR, BY MEsNE ASSIGNMENTS, To THE rEEaLEss INSULATED wmE AND CABLE COMPANY, or NEW YORK, N. Y., A 0 3,.

PORATION OF DELAWARE.

METHOD on ART or MAKING iNstmarnn wm Speciflcat'ion of Letters Patent. I Patentd lflay 9, 1922.

Application filed April 24, 1917. Serial No. 164,304.

T 0 an whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM E. CooK, a subject of the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at St. George, in the borough of Richmond, city of New York, county of Richmond, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Method or Art of Making Insulated Wire, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.

My invention relates to a method or art of making insulated wire and more particularly to improvements in producing wire having an insulation consisting of an absorbent body saturated or impregnated with asphaltum or other composition for waterproofing, and increasing the resistance of the coating material.

In a (to-pending application of mine, Se rial No. 164,302 I have described a method or art which consistsin spirally wrapping a cotton sliver about a wire coated with adhesive, and confining the sliver, in compressed condition, upon the wire by wrapping binding threads or cords about the compacted sliver prior to the saturation or impregnation of the sliver and the binding material, with an asphaltum or other composition. In this method or art, the binding threads or cords are wrapped about the sliver in a spiral, the pitch of which is .o-

incident with that at which the slivei is wrapped about the wire. While I have found that a wire constructed in this mannevertheless there is a possibility that as the result of the exhaustion of the adhesive bond between the sliver and the wire, or throughout the sliver, the sliver might unwind, and the binding threads or cords, being wound spirally about it at the same pitch, would necessarily unwind with it.

By my present invention, I avoid a possibility of this condition arising by spirally winding the bindng threads or cords about the sliver at a higher pitch than that at which the sliver is wound about the wire, thus having the binding material of shorter length than the sliver, and prevent-ing the simultaneous unwinding of both the sliver and the thread or cord by reason of the fact that such binding thread or cord, or portions said strand with a viscous composition whereby the insulating property is increased, the completed wire is waterproofed, and said sliver and said strand are set; and

in such other novel steps and practices as are hereinafter set forth and described and more particularly pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a machine showing the manner of-applying the cotton sliver and the binding to a conductor; and

Fig. 2 illustrates an apparatus used in the step of saturating or impregnating the covering for the wire with asphaltuin or other viscous composition.

Like letters refer to like parts in both views.

In the practice of the method or art of my invention, a continuous strand of a conductor wire a is passed through a bath of adhesive material indicated at b and has imparted thereto continuous traverse at a substantially uniform speed, being passed over the rollers c to a rewinding reel (not shown). During this traverse a continuous strip of cotton sliver d is spirally wound about the conductor wire a, the edges of succeeding convolutions forming a lap joint so as to secure continuity of this cover and substantially the same thickness thereof throughout. This sliver is applied by means of arotating platform 6 adapted to carry a container f for the sliver, the wire a passing vertically through this platform axially thereof. After the application of the sliver to the wire, thewire with the sliver thereon passes through a. compressing horn g having pacted covering therefor passesv from the horn g to a second horn h which still further compacts said sliver.

Immediately afterleaving the horn g the 5 binding strand'or strandsof cotton thread or cord, are spirally wound about the sliver, the'number of convolutions of said binding strand or strands per foot being less than the number of convolutions of the sliver for the same distance. I secure this result by rotatab-ly mounting a frame 2' adjacent the horn h and rotating this frame at a lower speed than that at which the platform e is rotated, Carried by the frame 2' is a plurality of spools containing a flexible strand of absorbent material such as cotton thread or cord j which is suitably guided and tensioned to cause it to tightly embrace the cotton sliver and be firmly imbedded therein.

By applying the binding thread or cord immediately following the final compression of the cotton sliver, the desired density of this covering material is secured and by rotating the frame i at lower speed than the platform e, the number of convolutions of said binding thread or cord, per foot, is less than those of the sliver and the pitch of these threads or cords is higher than that at which the sliver is applied to the wire.

Preferably a plurality of independent strands-are used, to permit the use of a fairly wide sliver confined at a number of different points by these threads or cords.

The variance in the number of convolutions and of the resulting pitch of the said threads or cords and of the sliver, causes the former to intercept the line of the lap joint of succeeding convolutions of the sliver, thus tending to minimize a tendency toward the unwinding of the sliver, either while the wire is in process or after it has been completed and is in. use.

After the cotton sliver has been applied to the wire, and confined in its com ressed condition in the manner above described by the thread or cord j, the wire with its covering is passed through a tank 70 containing a bath of viscous insulating, adhesive and waterproof material, such as the asphaltum composition ordinarily used in making insulated wire. The wire after the setting of this composition is waxed and passed through polishing andfinishing irons giving the desired, and final finish thereto.

By reason of the application of adhesive to the wire before wrapping the sliver spirally thereupon, this sliver will be firmly bonded to the wire so as to resist displacement by the compressing .or compacting horns, even though these horns do not have rotary movement.

While the cotton sliver is in the asphaltum or other similar bath, the cotton sliver will readily absorb this composition andby rea- 1; of he fact that substantial areas ofthe cotton sliver project between the strands of the thread or cord, which as heretobefore stated, are imbedded well within this sliver the portions of the sliver between said strands forming ducts through which the composition may readily flow to the bottom of the sliver.

The compression of the sliver will matte the fibers thereof, the thread or cord preventing expansion after the compression and the application of asphaltum or other composition, causes the fibers to firmly adhere or set, and at the same time firmly bonds the thread or cord to the sliver.

In the finished product, the binding threads or cords will not be perceptible as the cotton sliver will ordinarily lap thereover in a manner to completely conceal same.

Preferably, to permit the operation of the wrapping machine used, at high speed, I employ a cotton sliver having imbedded therein, and bonded thereto, a continuous cotton thread or cord which will serve to supplement the action of the binding threads or cords applied to the exterior of the sliver in holding the sliver in its compacted condition upon the wire.

In this manner, I am enabled by a substantially, simultaneous or continuous operation, to apply both the cotton sliver and the binding thread or cord to the wire, thereby gaining the advantage ovr the present methods of avoiding the necessity for passing the wires successively through a machine for wrapping this sliver about thewire, and a machine for applying a cover thereto.

The essentialcharacteristic of the method or art of my present.- invention is the application of the binding threads or cords at a higher pitch than that at which the sliver is applied to the wire, thus avoiding the possibility of the thread or cord being unwound simultaneously with the sliver while at the same time minimizing any tendency of the sliver to start to unwind, by reason of the fact that the binding threads or cords intercept the lap .ofsucceeding convolutions of the sliver.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent is 1. The herein described method or art of making insulated wire consisting in winding a cotton sliver spirally about a conductor wire with the edges thereof overlapping, compacting said sliver upon the wire, winding a strand of flexible, absorbent material about and embedding successive convolutions thereof within said sliver while it is compacted, said strand being wound at a higher pitch than said sliver is wound, with succeeding convolutions thereof spaced apart, whereby said strand will cross the lap between succeeding convolutions of said sliver and ducts will be formed between succeeding convolul said sliver 1S wound,

wound with succe tions of said strands to facilitate the penetra-.

tion of a viscous composition throughout the entire body of said sliver, and thereafter saturating or impregnating said sliver and said strand with a viscous composition whereby the insulating roperty thereof is increased, and the complgted wire is waterproofed and the fibers of said sliver and said strand are bonded together.

2. The herein described method or-art of making insulated wire consisting in winding a cotton sliver spirally about a conductor wire with the edges thereof overlappin compacting said sliver upon the wire, win ing a strand of flexible, absorbent material about said sliver while it is compacted, said strand being wound at a higher pitch than with succeeding convolutions thereof spaced apart, whereby said strand will cross the lap between succeeding convolutions of said sliver and ducts will be formed between succeeding convolutions of said strands to facilitate the penetration ,of a viscous composition throughout the entire body of said sliver, tensioning said strand while it is being wound, to imbed it in said sliver, and thereafter saturating or impregnating said sliver and said strand with a. viscous composition whereby the insulating property thereof is increased, and the completed wire is waterproofed andthe fibers of said sliver and said strand are bonded t0- gether. r y,

3. The herein described method or art of making insulated wire consisting in winding a cotton sliver spirally about a conductor wire with the edges thereof overlapping,v

compacting said sliver upon the wire, winding a plural ty of strands of flexible, absorbent material about and embedding successive convolutions thereof within said sliver while it-is compacted, said strands being laid in parallel lines, and being wound about said sliver at a higher itch than saidsliver is ingponvolutionsthereof spaced apart, whereby said strands will cross the la between succeeding convolutions of said sliver and ducts will be formed between succeeding convolutions of said-strands to facilitate the penetration ofa viscous composition throughout the entire body of said sliver, and thereafter nating said sliver and said strands with a viscous composition whereby theinsulating property thereof is increased, and the completed wire is waterproofed and the fibers of said sliver and said strands are bonded together. I x

4:. The {herein described method or art of making insulated wire consisting in winding a cotton sliver spirally about a conductor wire with the edges thereof overlap-ping, compacting said sliver upon the wire, winding a plurality of strands of flexible, absorbent material about said sliver while it is compacted, said strands being laid in parallel lines, and being wound about said sliver at a higher pitch than said sliver is wound, with succeeding convolutions thereof spaced apart, whereby said strands will cross the lap between succeeding convolutions of said sliver and ducts will be formed between succeeding eonvolutions of said strands to facilitate the penetration. of a viscous composition throughout the entire body of said sliver, tensioning said strands while they are being wound, to imbed. them in said sliver, and thereafter saturating or impregnating said sliver and said strands with a viscous composition whereby the insulating property thereof is increased, and the completed wire iswaterproofed and the fibers of said sliver and said strands are bonded together.

In witness whereof, I hereunto affixmy signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, this 9th day of April, 1917.

WILLIAM E. COOK. Witnemes:

BERTHA MUELLER, CLARIGE FRANCK.

saturating or impreg- 

